Synopsis:
Peter Parker balances his life as an ordinary high school student in Queens with his superhero alter-ego Spider-Man, and finds himself on the trail of a new menace prowling the skies of New York City.

Does 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming deserve to be called a “reboot”? Probably, though I suspect those involved would like to avoid that term if possible.

After all, this is a cinematic franchise that didn’t launch until 2002’s hugely successful Spider-Man. To date, that remains the only film ever to be number one in the US in a year during a which a Star Wars film hit the screens, and it spawned two highly successful sequels.

After 2007’s Spider-Man 3, however – the least successful to that point – the franchise took a break and came back with a formal reboot in 2012. That year’s Amazing Spider-Man brought in a new cast and crew and also retold the character’s “origin story” even though it’d only been 10 years since Spidey’s cinematic introduction.

Homecoming doesn’t spin that particular web again, which is why it blurs the lines in terms of its status as a “reboot”. However, the movie changes so much from either of the prior series that I don’t see how it can be viewed as anything other than a formal reboot – this movie offers little connection to its five predecessors.

Of course, we already met the new Spider-Man in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, and Homecoming picks up not too long after that film’s events. As seen there, Peter Parker (Tom Holland) moonlighted as superhero Spider-Man around his Queens neighborhood until Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) tapped him to be part of an Avengers-related battle.

Stark essentially becomes Peter’s largely absent mentor, and this leaves our nascent hero in the lurch. Stark’s manservant Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) acts as his liaison but gives Peter little to do, so Spidey tends to strike out on his own.

This becomes a bigger deal because local salvage worker Adrian Toomes (Michael Keaton) stole some super-powered gizmos leftover from the climactic battle of New York in Avengers. With these, he develops amazing weapons and also transforms himself into a airborne baddie called the Vulture.

When the Vulture and his minions stir the pot in Peter’s area, Spidey goes into action with varying results. Peter tries to balance life as a high school student with his heroic deeds as he attempts to halt the Vulture’s evil ways.

Homecoming isn’t your father’s Spider-Man – and by “your father’s”, I mean a version that closely adheres to the character mythology as defined in the 1960s. Homecoming takes far more liberties with that source than any of its five predecessors.

Without question, the 2002-2007 Tobey Maguire movies held closest to the source. Those made some alterations but generally stuck to the “classic era’s” concepts.

The 2012-2014 Andrew Garfield movies veered away from the mythology in some ways, mainly in the backstory they assigned to Peter’s parents. These films didn’t steer from the 1960s Spidey to a huge degree, but they clearly went their own way more than the Maguire flicks did.

Homecoming lets its freak flag fly to an even greater degree, and it also becomes the first of the three iterations to avoid the classic “origin tale”. Oh, Homecoming alludes to aspects of Spidey’s backstory, as we hear about how a radioactive spider bit him and how some tragic event impacted him, but the film largely eschews those details.

Not that it doesn’t create an “origin narrative” of its own. As shown in Civil War, we find a very inexperienced Spider-Man, one who needs polishing to become a real asset. Homecoming focuses on Spidey’s growth as both a superhero and a teen, so while it may avoid the info about how Peter got his powers and turned toward crime-fighting, it still brings us a form of “origin story”.

One that differs radically from the 1960s comics, largely because the film uses Tony Stark/Iron Man in such a strong way. That thread has no antecedent in the 1960s mythology, and it becomes a real weakness in my opinion.

I feel this way because it adds to the “Avengers-ization” of Spider-Man. Until recently, the rights to the character remained separate from those of Thor, Iron Man, Hulk and most of the others. That meant Spidey existed in his own little cinematic universe where the films needed to pretend the other heroes didn’t exist.

While I’m happy Marvel brought Spidey back to the nest, I don’t think they needed to shove him into the “Marvel Cinematic Universe” (MCU) as they do. I get that Marvel wants everything in their realm to connect together and intertwine, but cripes, can’t any of the characters stand on their own?

Sure, Ant-Man largely kept to itself – outside of a short cameo from an Avenger, that film stood on its own two feet. Of course, Civil War co-opted Ant-Man for its own needs, but I still think that character maintains a good distance from the rest of the MCU.

I wish I could say the same for the Spidey we find in Homecoming, but we get far too much of Stark/Iron Man for that to be the case. Stark’s fingerprints are all over Spidey – literally, as even the character’s suit comes from his benefactor’s labs!

Happily, Homecoming eventually gives Spidey some breathing room and allows him to step away from the rest of the MCU– though we won’t know how much of a degree until the next Spider-Man film, I suppose. Still, I’m pleased that Spidey gets a little distance by the end.

I just wish Homecoming didn’t focus so much on the character’s integration with the rest of the MCU in the first place. Spidey was always a fairly independent superhero who shied away from being part of a team.

If I recall correctly, in the 1960s he tried to join the Fantastic Four to earn a paycheck and took a pass when he learned he couldn’t make money. Perhaps subsequent comics established Spidey as someone more eager to work with a larger unit, but I retain the impression he preferred to go his own way.

That notion goes under the bus in Homecoming, as Spidey craves nothing more than to join the Avengers – and not for a paycheck. Indeed, the 2017 Peter seems to suffer from none of the disadvantages that impacted the earlier character, the one with an aunt who could barely afford to keep a roof over their head. This Peter doesn’t seem like a spoiled brat, but he sure doesn’t show the financial concerns we saw so much in the past.

Peter also appears to lack any of the angst that so defined Peter/Spidey over the decades, and that becomes one of the film’s weakest elements. 20 years old during the production, Holland offers easily the most age-appropriate Spidey, as he’s far closer to high school age than either of his predecessors. Maguire was 26 when he shot the 2002 film, while Garfield was 28 during the Amazing Spider-Man production.

While I like the fact that Homecoming almost gives us an actual teen Spidey, I feel les swild about Holland’s performance, mainly because he gives the character such a hyperactive vibe. I get the impression Holland tried so hard to make Peter/Spidey seem like a teen that he shot too low – his performance more closely emulates a pre-teen than the 15-year-old Peter.

Not that Holland flops in the role, and I prefer his perky turn to Garfield’s “emo Spidey”, but I wish he’d gone for a less manic feel. Maguire gave Peter/Spidey more of the “sad sack” tone the role needed, and I wish Holland had tried harder to reflect the character’s foibles. His Peter/Spidey just seems too happy-go-lucky.

I do like the update on the Vulture, though. Keaton gives the part bite, and he feels more credible than the approximately 900-year-old version seen in the comics.

Homecoming also excels in terms of its action scenes. It boasts the best fights that we’ve seen in Spidey films for quite some time – and maybe ever. When the film sticks with its battles, it lives up to its potential.

Hopefully the next Spidey will forge its own identity better than Homecoming and also offer a toned-down performance from its lead. Homecoming itself comes with some good elements but seems a little more erratic than I’d prefer.

Footnote: as usual, we get bonus footage after the film’s conclusion. One clip appears in the middle of the credits, while the other comes at the very end.

The Blu-ray Grades: Picture A-/ Audio A/ Bonus B-

Spider-Man: Homecoming appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.39:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This became a positive presentation.

Sharpness looked strong. Virtually no softness interfered with the image, so the flick came across as accurate and tight. Neither jagged edges nor moiré effects created concerns, and I witnessed no signs of edge haloes or print flaws.

Like most modern action flicks, Homecoming opted for a teal and orange orientation. These tendencies didn’t overwhelm, but they dominated, and the movie displayed them in an appropriate manner.

Blacks came across as deep and firm, while low-light shots presented clear imagery. The movie brought us a solid transfer.

As for the movie’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack, it delivered the expected dynamic material. With tons of action, the soundscape used all the channels on a frequent basis. This led us to an exciting sonic experience from start to finish.

The various speakers provided lots of information that filled out the movie and blended together in a seamless manner. Bullets, explosions, vehicles, flying elements – you name it and it blasted all around us. This formed a dynamic soundfield with a lot to offer.

In addition, audio quality seemed strong. Music was bold and full, and even with a lot of looped lines, dialogue remained crisp and natural. Effects appeared lively and vivid, with clear highs and deep lows. I felt pleased with this impressive soundtrack.

Given the movie’s high profile, its collection of extras seems a little modest. We start with the Spidey Study Guide, a text track.

The “Guide” gives us trivia about characters and story, with an emphasis on connections to the comics. Some movie notes appear as well, and these add up to a fairly interesting track, though the information pops up a little less frequently than I’d like.

A Gag Reel lasts two minutes, 17 seconds. Most of this gives us the usual goofs and silliness, but we get some ad-libbed lines that amuse.

10 Extended/Deleted Scenes fill a total of 16 minutes, 17 seconds. At five minutes, 30 seconds, the “Director’s Cut” of Peter’s “home movie” takes up the longest segment. It’s cute to see more of his Avengers-related adventures, but it’s good they didn’t include it all in the final film, as the “DC” goes way too long.

The remaining clips tend toward quirky tidbits, with an emphasis on comedy. We get a couple of minor expansions but little special, though we do learn the identity of the girl who does the high school’s public videos.

Action dominates Spidey Stunts. It fills five minutes, 48 seconds with info from Holland, Carroll, Latcham, Watts, executive producer Victoria Alonso and stunt coordinator George Cottle. This one examines attempts to bring Spidey to life, with an emphasis on Holland’s performance. It’s another mixed bag.

Next comes Aftermath, a four-minute, 47-second show with Feige, Carroll, Pascal, Latcham, Watts, O’Connor, and actors Michael Chernus and Bokeem Woodbine. “Aftermath” discusses the story’s supporting baddies and the related technology. It doesn’t tell us much of value.

We focus on the movie’s villain via The Vulture Takes Flight. In this six-minute, one-second reel, we hear from Keaton, Chernus, Lee, Carroll, Watts, Latcham, Pascal, O’Connor, Holland, Downey, Woodbine, and actor Logan Marshall-Green. “Flight” tells us about the film’s adaptation of the Vulture character and how Keaton brought him to life. This becomes a fairly involving take on the role’s reinvention.

The director comes to the fore in Jon Watts: Head of the Class. It goes for five minutes, 29 seconds and includes Watts, Latcham, Downey, Feige, Holland, Pascal, O’Connor, Carroll, Harrier, Zendaya, Batalon, Marshall-Green, Woodbine, Chernus, Keaton, and actor Jon Favreau. As expected, “Class” looks at Watts’ impact on the production. It mostly provides a lot of praise for the director.

Pros and Cons of Spider-Man takes up three minutes, 28 seconds with comments from Batalon and Holland. They offer a lighthearted look at the ups and downs of life as Spidey. It’s a goofy and moderately entertaining promo piece.

Finally, Rappin’ with Cap spans two minutes, 26 seconds. It splits into four areas and lets us see the Captain America public service announcements briefly glimpsed in the film. These offer amusement and become a fun addition.

The disc opens with ads for Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, The Dark Tower, Only the Brave, The Goldbergs, the Spider-Man videogame and November Criminals. No theatrical trailer for Homecoming appears, but we do get a look at a related VR program.

As a semi-reboot, Spider-Man: Homecoming comes with ups and downs. Though it entertains, it proves more erratic than I’d like, partly due to an overcaffeinated lead performance. The Blu-ray boasts excellent picture and audio along with a decent set of supplements. Homecoming turns into a good but not great Spider-Man film.